Jesonian: Uncertainty… September 13th, 2015

 Jonathots Daily Blog

(2691)

Abundant life.

It’s one of those promises which hides in the Holy Scriptures, taunting us with its ambiguity.

Some people would insist that the abundant life promised by Jesus is the confirmation that every believer should have earthly prosperity to match their spiritual bank account.

Other folks assert that abundant life is the series of trials and tribulations the believer endures as confirmation of God’s grace and willingness to see us through our darkest hours.

But since it was also Jesus who told us that “it rains on the just and the unjust,” and “the sun shines on the good and the bad,” it is highly unlikely that either of these interpretations offers a bucket to carry water from the fountain of life.

Actually, the only thing that Jesus proposes over and over again is the fact that the world is filled with tribulation. In other words, built into the system of Planet Earth is an ongoing bounty of uncertainty. This is why he tells us that we cannot change the length of our lives, nor do we have any power to ultimately control the world around us.

What Jesus came to do was give us the wisdom to know how to live in the environment provided. In other words, insights on how to prepare for uncertainty.

So you can see, the natural inclination is to remove all stress and tension from our lives. But unfortunately this makes us vulnerable and places at the mercy of luck.

• Luck is what happens when we let Mother Nature choose for us.
• Faith is what happens when we choose for ourselves.

So how do we do this?

1. Stop complaining about the uncertainty.

Worry is certainly not going to get us to an emotional status, where we are prepared to address the next difficulty by grabbing onto the available assets.

2. Ask.

Let’s be honest. Jesus would not tell us to ask if we were constantly certain about knowing. If you are bound and determined to be prepared for every situation, you will find yourself at the blade of uncertainty.

Sometimes we just don’t know, so we have to ask. Being unashamed to ask is admitting that uncertainty is a part of life, and the only way to overcome it is to get more information.

3. Seek.

Once again, we wouldn’t need to seek if we were certain that what we had was enough. We often need to admit that we are short before our short-sightedness destroys our vision.

There are things we have to seek because the uncertainty of life is always willing to mock what we have brought to the table.

4. Knock.

And of course, there would be no need to knock on doors if we were living in a household which was supplied with everything we need.

No matter how much you plan, there’s always something that comes up you didn’t expect, which requires that you transform yourself from being a mere consumer into a sales person.

Yes, we often need to knock on doors to find out exactly what can be acquired to meet the need that has been brought on by uncertainty.

There is one sure way to fail: put our faith in what we are, what we have or even what we believe.

Uncertainty is prepared to make us look foolish.

To avoid foolishness, we must admit that wisdom is an ongoing journey… and not a default position.

 

The producers of jonathots would humbly request a yearly subscription donation of $10 for this wonderful, inspirational opportunity

***************************

NEW BOOK RELEASE BY JONATHAN RICHARD CRING

WITHIN

A meeting place for folks who know they’re human

 $3.99 plus $2.00 S&H

$3.99 plus $2.00 S & H

 

Doorways… March 12, 2013

(1,818)

Today my left knee hurts. I had plans for it, including a lovely walk in the park. Yet my knee is reluctant, if not rebellious to the concept, and truthfully, will  become very sore with me if I pursue present plans.

So now what?

I have outlined to you is the whole quandary of life.

We have ideas. We make plans. We probably even become enthusiastic about the prospects. Often we purchase things to enhance these desires.

Then the whole thing falls apart. We universally refer to this malady as “problems.”

For instance, I could tell you that I was planning to go for a walk in the park, but a “problem” has arisen because my knee hurts. Most of you would nod your heads in agreement, sympathetically aware that such trials and ttribulations are just a part of our existence and that we patiently need to trust talent, life, God or whatever comes to our minds, to pull us through these hassles and hindrances.

But let me ask a question. What if it isn’t that way at all? What if the only real “problem” with human life is complacency? What if God–who is much smarter than us, by the way–knows that the only way to progress the human spirit, is by digressing our tendency to settle in on one thing, determined to remain.

For if God and life were to leave us to our own devices, we would find the most comfortable corner of the room with a pillowy chair, and cozy up to the least challenging possibility surrounding us.

What’s wrong with that?

The second most dangerous condition in human beings, after complacency, is boredom. All sin is born out of some form of boredom.

So problems come along to move us through the path of life so we don’t have to deal with nearly as many disasters. They are similar to the little earthquakes that occur to release the pressure on the fault lines, inhibiting a larger, more destructive shaking.

So let’s stop calling them problems. They are doorways.

My knee hurts today because for the past forty-eight hours I have given it a real workout. Without the pain, I might overdo it and create more permanent damage instead of temporary discomfort which can be alleviated through a day of rest.

In other words, without pain, there is no healing. Without healing, there is no improvement in health. And without improvement in health, there is no sense of enthrallment with the continuation of life.

What if everything that happens to us is a doorway to get us from our bedroom and  into a more expansive living space? Is there any basis for this idea?

“All things work together to the good … ”

You ever hear those words? “All things work together to the good…”

Really? Does that mean my aggravated knee, if viewed as a doorway instead of a problem, is going to take me on a journey today, which if I do not resist, will generate a new goodness unforeseen?

My answer is yes. And if you don’t believe that, you might have a tendency to live a life of a ping-pong ball, struck by divine inspiration, only to be propelled across the table to a paddle of evil, which smacks you back down to earth.

I will not be pinged and I will not be ponged.

I will not fight my pain. My pain is necessary; my pain is revelatory. My pain is divine information that there is something good out there waiting for me if I will just refuse to become depressed by the change of plans and instead, propel myself through the doorway.

For after all, there are many adventures yet to be experienced, where we discover that life is more than just a walk through the park.

The producers of jonathots would humbly request a yearly subscription donation of $10 for this wonderful, inspirational opportunity